Leslie Bellows

Products and/or services: Comprehensive Financial Planning, which includes investments, education planning, retirement planning, and insurance for individuals. For business owners, I also provide Business Planning services, which include employee benefits, business continuation, deferred compensation, executive bonus plans, and buy-sell funding.

Target market: Professional Women, Women Business Owners and their families. I focus on women because we have so many cards stacked against us. While both men and women share many of the same financial concerns, women do have unique lifestyle issues that directly impact their financial needs. Women live longer than men, their careers are more often interrupted by family needs, and women often earn less than their male counterparts.

Why join NAWBO? My good friend from college, Desiree Markle, suggested it would be an excellent opportunity for me to meet other women entrepreneurs. I went to a luncheon and met several successful and friendly women. So, I joined in March 2004.

Committee involvement: I am on the Membership Committee. I have made several friends through NAWBO and received excellent support for growing my practice. Becoming a member of NAWBO has been very rewarding for me, and I want to be directly involved in recruiting other women business owners. Plus, the other committee members work very hard and are a lot of fun!

NAWBO’s impact on my business or professional development: NAWBO has helped me build clients, develop strategic relationships with other professionals, and increase my web of contacts. If I need a service or good in either my professional or personal life, I know that a NAWBO member can help me directly or introduce me to one of her trusted resources.

What brings me joy in my work? At the end of every day, I know that I have made someone’s life better by giving them the guidance, knowledge, and support they need to make the financial decisions to secure their future and protect themselves and their loved ones, regardless of the road bumps life may throw at them. I help my clients identify and prioritize their goals, offer strategic advice specific to their needs, and implement the strategies that work best for their unique and specific situation.

What brings me joy in my personal life? Being a mentor to my 7 younger siblings and volunteering my time with Junior League. One person can make a huge impact in another person’s life if they take the time to do it. Positive encouragement is the best way that I know how to make a difference. Be present and encourage others to make their dreams a reality. The women of NAWBO are very supportive of each other, and that’s a big reason I continue to devote my time to this organization.

My interests and hobbies include exploring museums, attending the orchestra, reading, yoga, cheering for my favorite football team - the OU Sooners, cooking, and spending time with my family and friends.

Other charities: Junior League of Dallas is my favorite charity. The Junior League of Dallas has over 5,200 members that gave over 120,000 uncompensated hours of service to 48 Junior League of Dallas community projects and several service support committees. JLD is a diverse group of women who believe that voluntarism does make a difference. Monetary grants distributed by JLD to organizations within the community during 2003-2004 will be approximately $883,985.

I support the Junior League of Dallas as an active member through a variety of activities, including soliciting ad sales for our annual Charity Ball Program and serving on the Board of the JLD Transfer Club as Secretary. Since cooking is a personal passion of mine, I also spent this summer testing recipe submissions for our new JLD cookbook to be published next year. Every year, I select a new focus area for my time with JLD.

What else would I like my NAWBO peers to know about me? Maintaining a strong sense of community and a solid professional foundation are very important to me. My family has been paramount in developing my sense of community involvement and the importance of being a good example to others.

Other organizations:

Vice President, Dallas Area Alumni Association of Delta Sigma Pi

Junior Associate member at the Dallas Museum of Art

Plano Chamber of Commerce – Women’s Division Member

Greater Dallas Chamber of Commerce

Financial Planning Association

OU Club of Dallas

ABWA

NAFE

View past member profiles:

2004.07
2004.04
2004.03
2004.02

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